The Dating Game
by LovelyMagickUnicorn
Summary: Faberry Week Day 5: Online Dating. Quinn makes a dating profile. Rachel stumbles upon it. Somehow they end up going out together... just as friends, you know.


AN: Yeah everybody, so this is actually piece for this Faberry Week. Now I can get back to work on "The Running Back" as well as another project which I hope to be able to share with you all by the end of the year and also continue on some of my earlier contributions for this Faberry Week, in particular, "When You Wish Upon A Star"

I still need ideas for that one, although there will certainly see Lion Quinn, and honestly it was not my intention to have it have a Kingdom Hearts feel.

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><p>There was one thing in particular that Quinn was concerned about when she had decided to make her online profile, and that was the unlikely but possible chance that she'd somehow end up on a date with a serial killer. It was a highly improbable scenario but one that could happen. Really though, Quinn wasn't interested in online dating but her love life was currently been in a bit of a hole. She hadn't met a nice girl since, well… high school. Technically, that was her own fault but that didn't change the fact that she'd been in a good relationship in forever. She hadn't actually dated that nice girl.<p>

Oh, but how she wished that she had. If she had then maybe she wouldn't be in this situation. But she was in this situation and she was lonely, and she was also just the tiniest bit desperate. It had been a couple of years she had been out on a real date, and that date had been a bit of a disaster. It was a blind date mind you, but it had still been horrible. Of course it could have been worse; her date could have been a serial killer.

With that horrible thought aside Quinn hovered the cursor over the 'Complete' button. It was her last possible chance to back out. She wanted to, but she also didn't want to. Online dating seemed so impersonal and lacked the romantic elements that she craved but she was also tired of being the third wheel. She couldn't always hang out with Brittany and Santana, and she also couldn't let them find out that she had ever considered this. Santana would never let her live it down. Ever.

As though on cue, the door suddenly swung open. "We're here, Q!" Santana announced loudly. Quinn quickly shut her laptop and hid it under her pillow, silently cursing under her breath for every giving out a spare key. She soon had her best friends barging into her room and she had to act like she hadn't been doing anything. They were caring DVDs and boxes of microwavable popcorn. She remembered that they had been planning on having a movie marathon but Quinn hadn't expected them to show up so early. Thankfully her laptop was out of view. "Out of bed Q, let's go!" is all Santana yells before storming into the living room and plopping down onto the couch.

"I'll be up in a bit!" Quinn yells back. She quickly retrieved her laptop from underneath her pillow and opened it back up. Much to her horror she found that, in her haste, she had accidentally finalized her online profile. "Oh God no. No, no, no, no, no. How do I delete this?" she panicked quietly to herself. "Crap, where's the fucking delete button?" She began to search but then Brittany decided to pop her into her room. Out of reflex, Quinn immediately shut her laptop.

Brittany looked at her oddly, but didn't question her behavior. "Come on Quinn. We don't want to start without you."

"Yeah. Okay, just a second," she assured, which was a decent enough of an answer for Brittany. She returned to her girlfriend and Quinn reopened her laptop. Her online dating profile was staring her right in the face and Quinn ended up having this overwhelming need to change her profile picture. She felt like she needed one with a bigger, more genuine smile. She decided to look for one later on, and in deciding that she also ended up deciding it wouldn't kill her to leave her profile up… at least for a bit.

She shut off her laptop and joined Santana and Brittany in the living room. Just to be sure that they wouldn't start making out right beside her Quinn made sure to squeeze herself in between them. Needless to say, Santana wasn't too happy about that and she grunted out her annoyance. She elbowed Quinn's side and glared at her. Quinn scoffed and rolled her eyes. She leaned back and relaxed. After having done what was probably the most embarrassing thing in her life, she deserved that much.

Quinn hadn't planned on checking her profile so soon after making it. She was desperate but not that desperate. But as luck would have had it, she hadn't turned off automatic email notifications and thus when she woke the following morning Quinn found that she had a good number of hits along with a couple of messages. For some reason she was exceptionally surprised.

The girl who sent the first message was very attractive and just gave her a simple 'hi, you're cute.' Quinn blushed at that and made to note to herself to reply once she figured out something witty enough. The second girl was also really cute and complimented her on her taste in music. Quinn hadn't really put much thought into it when filling out that portion of her profile, but she was glad that she had it out the way that she had.

It was all quite enjoyable and Quinn found herself smiling as she read all the different compliments that everyone was giving her. It made her feel so good and so wanted in a way that she hadn't felt in so long. But then came one message that came from a very particular username; GoldStarBerry. Quinn couldn't tell who it was since her message box didn't show profile pictures. She'd have to open the message or go her profile to see her picture. Either way though she knew that it couldn't be her.

She opened the message and instantly she saw her face. She looked just as beautiful as Quinn remembered her. Her heart began to race so she quickly brought her eyes down to read the message that Rachel had sent her. 'Quinn, is that you?' it began. 'It's Rachel. It's been so long since we've seen each other. Kind of funny that we end up meeting here, huh? I miss you so much. How about we grab a cup of coffee sometime, my treat? I'd really love to see you.'

Now, Quinn knew that Rachel wasn't asking her out but since her offer to grab some coffee came over a dating website her mind couldn't help but process it as such. A date… with Rachel. Quinn could feel butterflies fluttering about in her stomach just at the thought that they might go out. They weren't though, but the chance to see Rachel and again and to catch up with her was something that Quinn didn't want to miss out on. She sent Rachel back a reply saying that she could come by the following weekend if Rachel wasn't busy.

Quinn received another message later on from an elated Rachel. Although they were just typed words on a screen, Quinn could see Rachel's excitement. She giggled to herself as she imagined Rachel squealing in joy. Her words clearly displayed how happy she felt, and Quinn loved reading them. Although she would have preferred it if Rachel hadn't chosen to start with something other than 'it's a date' because she really wished that it was a date. If only.

When Saturday finally came, Quinn got up bright and early and caught the first train that she could as she made her way to New York. She hadn't been there in a while; it was her way of moving on, but that plan never did quite work. She did still know where Rachel lived though, since they did send each other the occasional email or text. Sometimes Quinn would even call Rachel so that she could hear her voice. She tried not to make a habit out of that last one though. It was kind of cold out so Quinn wrapped her coat more securely around her as she made her way towards Rachel's apartment. Quinn was pretty certain that Rachel was already up, seeing as she normally would be awake at such an early hour but she took her time just in case.

But after a while her eagerness to see Rachel took over and Quinn found herself outside her door. She suddenly found herself feeling really nervous, as though she really were going out on a date with Rachel. A soft laugh escaped her lips. She couldn't believe how silly she was acting, like she was back in high school. She knocked on the door as she continued to laugh it off. But then the door opened and she was completely silent.

Rachel was dressed pretty casually; a black top with a v cut out in front that didn't really show much and a pair of jeans. There was nothing special about it but she looked gorgeous, she looked breathtaking. "Quinn? Oh my-" She quickly leapt, like she literally jumped, into Quinn's arms. "Oh, it's so good to see you!"

"Good to see you too." Quinn squeezed her tightly, and upon pulling back she added, "You look amazing!" She eyed her up and down, noting how flawless she looked. Rachel's cheeks reddened and she ducked her head. Little things like that often gave Quinn hope, but she knew better than to set her hopes up so high. "So uh… you up to grab that cup of coffee right now? We could um… we could go to that little shop you like down the street," she suggested with a shrug. Rachel made a confused face and Quinn felt like somehow she had totally fucked up. "Is there something wrong?"

"No," Rachel assured. "No, it's just… I'm surprised that you remembered that."

"Of course I did." For a second Rachel looked at her; not just a normal kind of look. It was one that Quinn had seen before, a look that never previously been directed at her. She had to be dreaming. Yeah, that was it. That or she was going crazy. Either way, her heart started to race. She smiled this goofy looking grin and offered Rachel her hand. "So uh, are you ready to go?"

"Just a sec. Let me grab my bag."

She headed back inside for a moment and once she came back Rachel linked arms with Quinn and they made their way out of the apartment building. They walked arm in arm in the direction of the coffee shop as Quinn asked Rachel about what was going on in her life. As expected, Rachel quickly informed Quinn about the role that she had landed. She made sure to not leave out a single detail. She started out with a riveting tale (Rachel's words) of how she swept the competition and then went on to tell Quinn about the rest of the cast and even some of the stage hands that she had met.

Needless to say that Quinn was so happy for her. She was fulfilling her dreams and doing so on her terms. Quinn could hope that she'd be able to do the same but there was only one little problem, emphasis on the 'little' part. When they reached the coffee shop Quinn made sure to hold the door open for Rachel, holding onto her hand as she went inside. After making their orders they found a nice little table near the window. There Rachel decided to stop going on and on about herself. "I've actually been trying to stop that habit," she admitted, to which Quinn shook her head.

"You shouldn't have to," she told her. "Anyone who says that you talk too much is just jealous that you've accomplished so much. Besides, the look you get on your face when you get ranting is adorable." She hadn't actually meant to say that last part and possibly spill her secret, but it was totally worth it to see Rachel's entire face turn a bright red. She picked up her cup of coffee and sipped on it for a good fifteen minutes or so, probably so she'd be able to easily change the subject once she was done.

And once she was finished, that's exactly what she did. "So uh… I couldn't help but notice that on your dating profile that you were um… seeking other women." Oh crap. In her excitement to see Rachel, Quinn hadn't at all considered that Rachel might have looked at her profile page for more than a few seconds. She must have done so and thus learned that very important fact.

"Yeah… I am," Quinn admitted. "I'm sorry I never told you before. I should have."

"No, it's okay. It's not like we've really had a chance to talk about these kinds of things recently anyway," she reasoned. "I was just curious, and I'm happy for you. I know that this couldn't have been easy for you." She reached across the table and took a hold of Quinn's hand. For a moment Quinn wondered. She'd have to go check Rachel's profile later on. They weren't currently on a date but maybe one day.

After that they changed the topic again. Their conversation lingered on for hours, long after they had finished their coffee, and things just progressed from there. After they left the coffee shop Rachel asked Quinn if she wanted to a nearby theater to watch a movie. Quinn wasn't about to refuse. They argued a bit about to watch, but it didn't take long for them to come to an agreement that adequately satisfied the both of them. After that they had some lunch. And just when Quinn thought her day was about to come to an end, Rachel said something about dancing and about how long it had been since she had done any. Something felt off, but Quinn just went with how things were going. She asked Rachel if she wanted to go dancing.

The whole day felt so surreal. If felt like… but it wasn't. It couldn't. Quinn was confused and she was afraid that she'd end up letting her feelings for Rachel get the best of her. She wanted to make sure not to do anything else that was 'date like' for the rest of the night. But when they got to Rachel's place and she asked, "Walk me to my door?" Quinn couldn't refuse. The confidence she had had at the beginning of the day had disappeared over the hours. She was nervous and fidgety, but she couldn't just tell Rachel 'no' or at least she couldn't without looking rude.

She took Rachel by the hand, linking their fingers, and escorted her to her door. Quinn could hear her heart pounding in her chest. The sound was deafening. Every step seemed to go on forever. There was an awkward silence when they reached the door to Rachel's place. Quinn was still holding on to Rachel's hand and she had no intentions of letting go. "Today was fun."

"Yeah," Rachel agreed. "We should do it again some time."

"I'd like that."

Quinn expected Rachel to pull her keys out of her bag but she didn't. And the longer they stood there, just looking at each other, the more her willpower faltered. Her eyes closed briefly and when they opened again Rachel looked closer. She had to stop herself. She had to. Quinn so wanted to kiss those lips but she knew that she shouldn't. But still she found herself leaning forward. At the last possible moment, she put her hands on Rachel's shoulders and pushed herself back.

"Oh, Quinn. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to." Wait, what? "I- I shouldn't have done that. I just-" Rachel started scrambling for her keys. She tried one but the door wouldn't turn. "Your profile said- and I thought that…" Her words came out non-stop. It was difficult for Quinn to understand. The parts that she did hear didn't seem to make any sense. She gently wrapped her fingers around Rachel's wrist to stop her attempts of escape. Rachel turned her head away. "Please Quinn, can we just forget that this ever happened?"

"Forget what happened?" Quinn asked with genuine confusion.

"Like you don't know," Rachel replied, her head still turned away from Quinn.

"I don't." Rachel scoffed in disbelief and so Quinn repeated, "I don't Rachel, really."

Rachel sighed and turned to Quinn slowly. Her gaze was down upon her feet so she wouldn't have to look Quinn in the eye. "I… I tried to kiss you." And there it was. Words that Quinn had never expected to hear. "Can we just forget about it now?"

"No."

"No?!" Rachel's head snapped up. "Why not? It was a stupid mistake. I read into things too much, and I'm for trying to kiss you but I just-" It was clear that she wasn't going to stop so Quinn decided to shut her up by grabbing her face and kissing her right on the lips. Rachel fought her for a second until she realized what was happening.

When Quinn pulled back Rachel was both breathless and speechless. She looked adorable and confused. "I don't want to forget about it because if we did then we wouldn't be able to do that anymore."

"Wait- You mean- I wasn't just-"

"You're cute when you're speechless. You know that?" Quinn teased, earning a blush from Rachel. "I've liked you for a long time. So… is our first date then?"

"I suppose, why?"

"Because I know that you're the kind of person to keep track of firsts, and I want to be prepared for potential anniversaries."

"Isn't it a little early to be thinking of anniversaries?"

"Maybe, but I want us to have anniversaries."

"Yeah, I do too."


End file.
